Software:Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword

From HandWiki
Short description: 2001 video game
Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword
North American box art
Developer(s)Core Design
Publisher(s)Activision
Producer(s)
  • Andy Watt
  • Mike Schmitt
Designer(s)
  • Jamie Morton
  • Paul Field
Programmer(s)
  • Dan Scott
  • Ian Manders
Artist(s)Matt Charlesworth
Composer(s)
  • Manfred Linzner
  • Bernhard Wodok
SeriesTomb Raider
Platform(s)Game Boy Color
Release
  • NA: 25 June 2001
  • EU: 17 August 2001
Genre(s)Action-adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword is an action-adventure video game, part of the Tomb Raider series, developed by Core Design and published by Activision under license from Eidos Interactive. It was released for the Game Boy Color in 2001, and is a sequel to the first Tomb Raider for the same system. The next Tomb Raider game for a handheld system was Software:Tomb Raider: The Prophecy for the Game Boy Advance.

Plot

A long time ago, an evil magician named Madame Paveau rose to power in the underworld of New Orleans using her dark magic and sacrificing humans. The underworld became synonymous with fear, and only with the aid of a powerful, benevolent magician could people rise up against her murderous control. After a mob broke into her mansion and burnt it down, the evil magician was destroyed. Her body was shattered upon jagged precipices on the bottom of a nearby cliff.

People believed they were safe from Madame Paveau and her devilish ways, but they were not aware that one of her apprentices had survived. He performed an ancient rite by her broken body and captured her soul in a sacred container. The minion began his search for a suitable body and the proper spells that would bring his master back to life.

In a dark antiquities museum, Lara Croft witnesses the theft of a powerful sword from the museum. In the confusion and chaos of the theft, Lara is cut by the sword. Her blood on the blade makes hers the body that is needed for the ritual. The minion sets off to gather the remaining objects needed to transfer Madame Paveau's soul into Lara's body.

Lara starts pursuing the cult, hoping to save her soul, eventually tracking them down to The Bahamas. Lara succeeds in retrieving the sword and breaks it in two, preventing Paveau from resurrecting.

Development and release

Curse of the Sword was developed for the Game Boy Color by Tomb Raider series developers Core Design, who also developed earlier GBC title.[1][2] Staff included co-producers Andy Watt and Mike Schmitt, artist Matt Charlesworth, and designers Jamie Morton and Paul Field.[1] Series owner Eidos Interactive were eager to have a Tomb Raider game release to coincide with the 2001 film adaptation.[3] The music and audio were handled by Manfred Linzner and Bernhard Wodok of Shin'en; Curse of the Sword and its predecessor were among the company's first projects.[4][5]

While the original GBC title was licensed out by Eidos to THQ,[6] Curse of the Sword was licensed out to Activision.[3] The game was announced by Eidos Interactive and Activision at E3 in May 2001.[7] The game was released in North America on 25 June,[8] and in Europe on 17 August.[9]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
GameRankings76.71%[10]

The game received an average score of 76.71% at GameRankings, based on an aggregate of 7 reviews.[10]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword Instruction Booklet (GBC). Activision. 27 July 2001. https://archive.org/details/NintendoGameBoyColorManuals/Tomb%20Raider%20-%20Curse%20of%20the%20Sword%20%28USA%2C%20Europe%29/mode/2up. 
  2. ↑ "Tomb Raider: Lara Shines On Game Boy Color". Nintendo Power (Nintendo of America) (120): 73. March 2000. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Activision Signs Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword For Worldwide Release". Activision. 20 June 2001. http://www.activision.com/investor/pressreleases/378.html. 
  4. ↑ "Music". Shin'en. http://www.shinen.com/music/music.php3?ref. 
  5. ↑ "Shin'en". MCV UK. 17 September 2007. https://mcvuk.com/development-news/shinen/. Retrieved 19 January 2024. 
  6. ↑ Garrett, Mary Nelson (7 June 2000). "THQ Ships Tomb Raider Starring Lara Croft For Game Boy Color". THQ. http://www.thq.com/About/PressReleases/press-196.asp. 
  7. ↑ "E3: Lara Tickles Your Pockets Again". 18 May 2001. https://www.ign.com/articles/2001/05/18/e3-lara-tickles-your-pockets-again. 
  8. ↑ "Lara Croft comes to the Game Boy Color". 20 June 2001. https://www.gamespot.com/articles/lara-croft-comes-to-the-game-boy-color/1100-2778826/. 
  9. ↑ "UK Release Dates". http://eurogamer.net/release-dates.php. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword for Game Boy Color". GameRankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/gbc/523652-tomb-raider-curse-of-the-sword/index.html. 
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

On February 13, 2025, Freyholtz stepped down as the site lead to move onto new projects, leaving operations to Tracy Poff, a veteran coder on the site, and Atari staff.[18]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
  18. ↑ "An update on MobyGames leadership". 2025-02-13. https://www.mobygames.com/forum/3/thread/269628/an-update-on-mobygames-leadership/#post-269628. 
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